GENDER MAINSTREAMING OF UNDP KENYA COUNTRY PROGRAMS
INTRODUCTION
The Kenya Constitution is said to be one of the most progressive constitutions that has an
expansive Bill of Rights as one of its critical features as well as a set of national values and
principles of governance. It heralds a new dawn for women as it recognizes the critical role that
women play in the development of the country. Through affirmative action provisions such as
those in Articles 27 and 81, has incorporated the one-third
gender rule and increased the number of women in leadership
KENYA CONSTITUTION
positions across all political establishments at the national and
county levels. The same rule is also being applied across
Article 27 (3): Women and
company boards and in public bodies amid an urgent need to
men have the right to equal
ensure employment opportunities are also set at par.
treatment, including the
UNDP Kenya has therefore designed its programs to
mainstream gender issues in addressing the interlinking
components of poverty, inequality and exclusion towards
achieving sustainable growth. A large majority of the poor are
women and girls. The vast majority of majority of refugees and
internally displaced people are women and children. Women in
Africa constitute the majority of people living with HIV/AIDS.
Environmental degradation and climate change impact poor
women and men differently. More often than not women are
more vulnerable to disasters and all over the world they are
subjected to gender-based violence. Discrimination in law and
in practice, limits women’s ability to influence public policies
and to access fully the services provided by government.
right
to
equal
opportunities in political,
economic, cultural and
social spheres.
27(8) ... State shall take
legislative and other
measures to implement the
principle that not more than
two-thirds of the members of
elective or appointive bodies
shall be of the same gender.
UNDP Kenya has commited at least 15 per cent of all programme budgets to advancing women’s
empowerment in line with the UNDP Gender Equality Strategy, 2014-2008. This will support
better targeting of women, youth and vulnerable groups and will facilitate generation of gender
statistics and gender-disaggregated data.
UNDP Kenya’s four strategic program areas are
(a) Devolution and accountability;
(b) Productive sectors and trade;
(c) Environmental sustainability, renewable energy and sustainable land management; and
(d) Community security, cohesion and resilience.
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DEMOCRATIC GOVERNANCE
The March 2013 Kenyan elections saw the most number of women seek elective positions in the
expanded political field that for the first time had a two tier system of Government. This follows
the enactment of the new constitution in 2010 that provided for not less than one-third of the
seats in the National Assembly should be held by persons of either gender (the one-third gender
rule). This, including the 47 seat specifically for County Women Representatives was widely
expected to see the number of women representation increase in Parliament. Women captured
an historic 86 of the 416 seats (including senate) about 20.6 % – a marked improvement from the
10 percent of the previous parliament. Several other women were elected and nominated as
Members of County Assembly. This however is far less than the one-third representation that
was expected, with no woman being elected for the Presidency, Governor or Senate position.
The Constitution also obligates the state to ensure access to justice for all persons. This is
considered to include; awareness of and understanding of the law; easy availability of
information pertinent to ones rights; equal right to the protection of one’s rights by the legal
enforcement agencies; easy entry into the formal and informal judicial justice system; easy
availability of physical legal infrastructure; affordability of the adjudication engagement; cultural
appropriateness and conducive environment within the judicial system; timely processing of
claims; and timely enforcement of judicial decisions.
The UNDP governance programs take on a human rights based approach to development and
highlights the following key strategic gender based areas:
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That women need to be represented in social, political and economic spheres, adding
their voice to governance issues
Women need to be engaged in decision-making on government budgets and resource
mobilization at the county and national level.
Ensure that laws to protect women’s rights are enforced and Incentives offered to public
institutions that address women’s needs.
Capacity building for women to know their rights and be able to access judicial legal
systems and skills and confidence to influence the decisions that directly affect their lives.
Women are often denied access to business transactions and excluded from negotiations
surrounding land titles. Legislation needs to change to allow women to access business
and land ownership.
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INCLUSIVE ECONOMIC GROWTH
COUNTY BUSINESS CENTERS
UNDP is partnering with various county governments to assist in the setup of County Business
Development centers that will be a one stop shop facility targeting women and youth with a view
to enabling and supporting them to take up self-employment and thus catalyze employment
creation and economic growth in the Counties. This follows that most women and youth are
involved in Micro, small and medium sized enterprises which are often uncompetitive due to
limited resources, lack of quality business development services and limited infrastructure. These
centers will therefore help them form linkages with other micro and large companies for value
addition to their products, as well as better access to markets and finances.
This program will assist women in the following areas.
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Skills and entrepreneurship training : This will be done through linkages with training
institutions
Set up Business development Services which will provide information services and create
awareness and sensitize women on available opportunities for development and
economic empowerment – this will also include business advisory services, registration
and licensing
Linking the small businesses with big businesses and local and export markets Facilitating
access to affordable finance through public sector funds (Uwezo fund, Youth Enterprise
Development Fund and Women Enterprise Fund.)
Assist women to identify and take advantage of the affirmative action in allocation of 30
percent of Government procurement to youth and women run enterprises
Establish centers of excellence to support youth, women and SMEs
Development of value chain, value addition and business incubation through the centers
to build on existing opportunities and other areas
ECONOMIC EMPOWERMENT PROGRAM
Poverty remains a challenges in Kenya, and the poor are mostly women, single headed
households, the elderly and orphaned children. A reported 83% of females are in informal
employment compared to 71% for males, most of them engaged in agricultural self employment
and the informal sector is characterized by underemployment, low productivity and wages,
absence of job security and social security provisions. This program is working towards economic
and social inclusion and equity of the poor and vulnerable in Kenya, with a strong focus on youth
and women.
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PEACE BUILDING AND CONFLICT PREVENTION UNIT
1. DEEPENING FOUNDATIONS FOR PEACEBUILDING AND COMMUNITY SECURITY IN
KENYA
There is a distinct gender aspect to conflict and violence in Kenya. Women and girls suffer
disproportionate impact from civic disorder and require specific attention to their vulnerability
in comparison to men. In certain areas Sexual and Gender-Based Violence (SGBV) is used as a
weapon to humiliate communities. SGBV continues to be a key factor in displaced camps where
commercialization of sex as a tool to access basic needs like food, shelter, cloths and to health
within the camps. Women have however helped build bridges for peace and defuse intercommunal tensions across societies. In Wajir County, women took the first steps to lay
the foundations for what has become the District Peace Committees’ model. Now there are
about 25 women Chairing Local Peace Committees and it is envisaged that the one-thirds gender
rule is adhered to in the formation of the County Peace Secretariats and Policing Authorities.
The gender components include:
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Integrating conflict sensitivity programming principles into national and county
development plans.
Conducting thematic studies and trainings on human rights, conflict sensitivity, gender
and HIV & AIDS issues related to peacebuilding, reconciliation and community security
and disseminate the findings to the relevant stakeholders.
Popularize and implement innovative community security projects and ensure protection
of women, girls and vulnerable groups in hotspot areas.
Facilitate the adoption and implementation of the Kenya National Action Plan (KNAP) on
women, peace and security.
Integrate and implement innovative citizen/community security projects in critical
hotspot areas.
In collaboration with UN Women and other agencies/bodies, support the domestication
and implementation of the relevant provisions of the UNSCR 1325.
2. ARMED VIOLENCE AND SMALL ARMS REDUCTION IN PASTORALISTS COMMUNITIES IN
KENYA
There are significant gender dimensions to armed violence prevention and reduction. The
majority of both perpetrators and immediate victims of armed violence are men. This suggests
that armed violence is linked with cultures of masculinity and the societal roles of men. High
levels of armed violence tend to be reflected in similarly high levels of sexual and gender based
violence (including domestic violence), in which women are the main victims. The roles of women
and men in armed violence are substantially different, and both women and men have to be
included in the discussions and activities related to preventing future violence.
In this light, and to respond well to the gendered dimensions of armed violence, the project will
include the following components and activities:
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Ensuring participation of women in peace forums and other discussion mechanisms as
well as continued strengthening of Women Peace Forums.
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Both men and women are consulted during selection of peace dividend projects and
training needs
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Ensure that not more than 70% of the project direct beneficiaries will be of the same
gender
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All baselines and monitoring and evaluation activities will produce data that are genderdisaggregated and that looks specifically to the roles, experiences and needs of men,
women, boys and girls. This will include the mapping of differences in access to justice,
victim assistance and to other related social services.
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The program will engage communities to prevent violence against women and supports
legal frameworks that are inclusive and protect women's rights.
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Monitoring and evaluation indicators will be gender based.
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to work closely with women groups and organizations dealing with peace issues
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Women must be given equal opportunities to livelihoods, including access to land and
credit. Rebuilding in key sectors such as transportation, shelter and health care must
specifically benefit women.
ENERGY ENVIRONMENT AND CLIMATE CHANGE UNIT
KACCAL PROJECT
Kenya Adaptation to Climate Change in Arid Lands (KACCAL) project addresses the underlying
environmental considerations to other developmental programs such as employment creation
and regeneration of rural livelihoods through targeted investments in activities with the potential
to generate economic growth especially in marginal rural environments.
Most of the community projects that have been supported through KACCAL have more women
members and therefore address the gender dimensions to development. On average, more than
ninety percent of group membership is made up of women.
Many communities in the ASALs are in a transition from traditional to a modern way of life. This
transition has a direct bearing on gender and youth roles. For instance, the traditional roles of
men as heads of households/providers and women as domestic caretakers are changing. Women
in ASALs now have a greater burden to carry out more work and responsibilities than were
traditionally prescribed (e.g. livestock herding). Most female tasks (e.g. fetching wood and water)
have also become more time consuming and difficult because of the scarcity of resources and
environmental degradation. This project will strive to improve promote greater gender equality
by empowering women and youth in decision-making processes and resource management and
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allocation. It will therefore facilitate an assessment of gender issues, particularly as they affect,
or are affected by the project activities, outputs and outcomes. It will then identify
recommendations for correcting any potential negative impacts and for empowering women and
youth within the context of SLM and the project, and facilitate their implementation.
DISASTER RISK REDUCTION
Climate induced disasters often place undue burden on women who are mainly responsible in
most societies for providing food and water for households. Women can also be a greater risk of
violence and inequality during recovery from disaster while the death rate from disasters is often
higher than that of men.
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Women’s unique needs must be incorporated in analyses of disaster risk and post disaster
risk assessments.
As community structures crumble and violence escalates, steps must be taken to prevent
the increased vulnerability of women and girls.
Women’s economic potential goes unrealized as their interests are not factored into the
recovery effort. For example, cash-for-work schemes often do not specifically target
women-headed households.
Temporary housing often denies women privacy, increases their vulnerability to
exploitation and discrimination and marginalizes widows. This has an effect on the wellbeing of women and children.
Women’s experience and knowledge must be valued and incorporated in any plans or
policies.
COMMUNICATION AND KNOWLEDGE MANAGEMENT
Incorporating gender equality priorities into advocacy and strategic planning in the development,
humanitarian, peace, and security spheres is crucial to improving the capacities (skills,
capabilities, awareness and knowledge, access to information, awareness on economic and social
rights/social protection schemes) to not only women but to all Kenyans.
Each program should therefore an advocacy component that would also increase the access of
women to media and communication technologies so that gender perspectives, women’s
expertise and women’s media can influence public discourse and decision making on peace and
security. Other areas of engagement include use of local and social media to raise awareness on
gender issues.
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